Lake Hume buzz, crash probe continues

AN investigation into an ultralight crash at Lake Hume a year ago still has not been finished.

A Civil Aviation Safety Authority spokesman said it was not known how much longer the probe would take.

Initial separate investigations revealed the ultralight pilot was unlicensed and his plane unregistered.

Bob Bogaard, 60, had to be rescued from his Facet Sapphire ultralight after it crashed into the lake on January 2 last year.

The craft ended up in water about a kilometre from the shore of Ludlow’s Reserve, south of Bowna, about 3.30pm.

Earlier, police received several phone calls from worried holidaymakers who saw a plane flying erratically over a 20-kilometre stretch of water.

Some were buzzed by the ultralight, which flew just metres above their heads.

One family watched in shock as the plane flew within 10 metres of their boat and swooped close to a tow line being pulled by another boat.

Recreational Aviation Australia confirmed a few days later that Mr Bogaard’s student pilot certificate had expired more than a year before the crash and that the single-engine aircraft was unregistered.

This has been likened to someone driving an unregistered car without a licence.

The Civil Aviation Safety Authority has warned ultralight pilots that flying while unlicensed and flying unregistered planes carried penalties of two years’ jail for each offence.

CASA does not usually investigate the causes of accidents, but looks into potential breaches of safety regulations.